From Publishers Weekly
The Harper Ranch is in trouble, and it's up to the Harper girls to save it from foreclosure. The five oldest sisters, frustrated at being stuck on a failing 1860s Texas ranch, yearn for marriage or the stage; the youngest, narrator Lily, 13, enjoys ranch life. The unlikely gang tries various harebrained money-raising schemes, from rustling to moonshine to banditry. They all fail hilariously, but the attendant notoriety leads to a lucrative exclusive in a New York paper and an even more lucrative and funny stage career, reenacting their infamous exploits. They save the ranch, and a triple wedding satisfactorily closes the book. Though the pioneer setting is somewhat caricatured, Karr ( It Ain't Always Easy ) tells a rollicking tale. Lily's pointed comments on growing up and the possibilities open to women at the time enrich the novel, making for a complex and engrossing story. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Kirkus Reviews
Stand back! The six Harper sisters--March, April, May, June, July, and Lily, the youngest--set out to pay off their daddy's debts on his broken-down South Texas ranch. After abortive attempts at cattle-rustling and making moonshine to ``dissipate the Yankees'' stationed nearby, they settle on robbing a stagecoach; that and the subsequent trial earn them national notoriety--plus an invitation to reenact the drama on stage in New York. Though there isn't quite the privation or danger here that made Karr's It Ain't Always Easy (1990) such an emotional roller-coaster (well, the sisters do foil a bank robbery), there's plenty of high-spirited comedy, a nonstop pace, and--best of all--an enterprising young cast that surely knows how to get its way. A happy, rip-roaring adventure, capped by a whirlwind of marriages, family reunions, and wishes fulfilled. (Fiction. 11-14) --
Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.